Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB Shares Acquired by Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 66.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 121,972 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 48,702 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Columbia Banking System were worth $3,140,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in Columbia Banking System by 612.8% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,005 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 864 shares during the period. West Oak Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Columbia Banking System in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Columbia Banking System by 194.6% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 794 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System in the third quarter worth $31,000. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Columbia Banking System Stock Up 2.7%

Shares of COLB opened at $32.07 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.19 and a beta of 0.61. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 52-week low of $19.61 and a 52-week high of $32.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $28.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.02.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $715.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $693.23 million. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 17.11% and a return on equity of 11.40%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.71 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. This is a positive change from Columbia Banking System’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio is 65.49%.

Insider Activity at Columbia Banking System

In other news, Director Steven R. Gardner sold 13,725 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total value of $403,926.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on COLB. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.88.

About Columbia Banking System

Columbia Banking System, Inc is a bank holding company that operates through its principal subsidiary, Columbia State Bank. Headquartered in Tacoma, Washington, the company provides a full range of banking and financial services to commercial, small business and consumer customers. Its branch network is concentrated in the Pacific Northwest, with locations across Washington, Oregon and Idaho, where it aims to combine local decision-making with the resources of a larger institution.

The company’s offerings include commercial real estate lending, construction and development financing, equipment and small business loans, and deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts.